86R10101 BEE-D
 
  By: Alvarado S.J.R. No. 42
 
 
 
A JOINT RESOLUTION
  proposing a constitutional amendment authorizing the operation of
  casino gaming by licensed persons at nine locations in this state to
  provide additional money for the permanent school fund and
  authorizing federally recognized Indian tribes to conduct gaming on
  certain Indian lands; providing for the requirement of occupational
  licenses, the authorization of a tax and fees, and the provision of
  criminal penalties.
         BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 47(a), Article III, Texas Constitution,
  is amended to read as follows:
         (a)  The Legislature shall pass laws prohibiting lotteries
  and gift enterprises in this State other than those authorized by
  Subsections (b), (d), (d-1), and (e) of this section and by Section
  47a of this article.
         SECTION 2.  Article III, Texas Constitution, is amended by
  adding Section 47a to read as follows:
         Sec. 47a.  (a)  The legislature by general law in accordance
  with this section shall authorize the operation of casino gaming in
  this state in which individuals for consideration play games of
  chance that award prizes and are operated by persons licensed or
  otherwise authorized by this state to conduct casino gaming to
  provide additional money for the permanent school fund.  The law
  must:
               (1)  limit casino gaming operations in this state to
  gaming operated by persons licensed in this state to operate casino
  gaming at not more than nine licensed locations, with licenses
  allocated as follows:
                     (A)  one license in each of the counties of
  Galveston, Jefferson, and Nueces, provided the license issued in
  Jefferson County is for a location approved by the commissioners
  court of the county that has interstate access and other
  appropriate infrastructure;
                     (B)  three licenses in Bexar and Harris Counties
  to persons who are licensed to conduct pari-mutuel wagering on
  horse and greyhound races in one of those counties, provided not
  more than two licenses are awarded in either county; and
                     (C)  one license in each of three first tier
  coastal or second tier coastal counties, as those terms are defined
  by Section 2210.003, Insurance Code;
               (2)  impose on casino gaming operations in this state a
  tax of not less than 18 percent of the casino's gross gaming
  revenue;
               (3)  require net revenue from the regulation and
  taxation of casino gaming authorized under this section to be used
  to fund the permanent school fund;
               (4)  provide:
                     (A)  a comprehensive licensing program, including
  necessary background investigations, to govern a person that
  manages casino gaming operations in this state or that maintains,
  manufactures, distributes, sells, or leases casino games for use or
  play in this state;
                     (B)  procedures for the state agency responsible
  for conducting criminal background investigations for the state to
  provide criminal background information to the state agency
  responsible for licensing under Paragraph (A) of this subdivision;
  and
                     (C)  procedures for the monitoring and inspection
  of casino gaming operations as necessary to protect the public
  health, welfare, and safety, to preserve the integrity of this
  state and gaming operations in the state, and to prevent financial
  loss to this state; and
               (5)  prohibit and impose criminal penalties for the
  possession and operation of all gaming devices other than devices
  operated in connection with authorized casino gaming operations or
  gaming devices otherwise authorized by state law.
         (b)  All shipments of casino gaming equipment or other gaming
  devices into, out of, or within this state authorized under this
  section or a law enacted under this section are legal shipments of
  the devices and are exempt from the provisions of 15 U.S.C. Sections
  1171-1178 prohibiting the transportation of gambling devices.
         (c)  This section does not prohibit an Indian tribe or tribal
  organization that was included on the December 30, 1998, list of
  Indian Entities Recognized and Eligible to Receive Services from
  the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs, published in the
  Federal Register by the Secretary of the Interior as required by 25
  U.S.C. Section 5131, from conducting gaming on land in this State
  that is held in trust for the tribe or organization or that is
  recognized by the United States as the tribe's or organization's
  tribal land. The prohibitions described by Section 47(a) of this
  article do not apply to gaming by the tribe or organization on land
  described by this subsection, and the tribe or organization may
  conduct gaming on that land.
         SECTION 3.  This proposed constitutional amendment shall be
  submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 5, 2019.
  The ballot shall be printed to permit voting for or against the
  proposition: "The constitutional amendment authorizing the
  operation of casino gaming by licensed persons at nine locations in
  this state to provide additional money for the permanent school
  fund and authorizing federally recognized Indian tribes to conduct
  gaming on certain Indian lands."